Berklee College of Music honors Zumix co-founder Madeleine Steczynski

(Phil Farnsworth/Courtesy Berklee College of Music)

Madeleine Steczynski, center, accepts her award from Lynette Gittens, Berklee City Music director of operations and enrollment, and Hebert Labbate, Berklee City Music business operations manager.

By Boston.com

Berklee College of Music recently presented the leader of an East Boston arts organization with an award for her leadership and empowerment of youth through music.

Madeleine Steczynski, co-founder and executive director of Zumix, was honored by the music college’s office of community affairs and campus engagement at a recent ceremony for the third annual Berklee Urban Service Awards. The awards “are based on the principle that institutions of higher education realize their greatest potential when they serve as fully committed members of the community,” according to press release from Berklee.

The awards ceremony included performances by Beyond Borders, a Berklee student group that uses music to raise awareness; the international ensemble Women of the World, winners of Performance of the Year for their 2011 performance at Swingin’ in Mothers Rest; and Studio Heat with the Berklee Hip-Hop Ensemble, a collaboration between Berklee students and young people from Blue Hill Boys and Girls Club Music Clubhouse

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